Just a Man, A Hero to Me

My dad died when I was 11 years-old of colon cancer. When I was growing up my dad taught me many things but the thing I learned the most was how to enjoy fishing. First, he made lists of things he needed for the fishing trip and had maps of where he was going. Second, he taught me how to hold the fishing rod correctly. Third, how to cast the line into the water. Finally, how to reel in the big ones. Although he taught me these things while he was living, the importance of this activity I learned after he died:

1. YOU GOTTA HAVE A PLAN (that ones for you, Jim). Setting goals of what to do with my life and the direction that I wanted my life to go seemed easy enough. . .but life doesn't always work out the way you had planned. Which was the thing I learned the most.
2. Hold on tight! Although he wouldn't necessarily be considered a religious person, my dad showed spirtitual strength in his love for nature and his family. This strengthened my desire to hold to the iron rod (the Word of God) and choose that pathway.
3. Give it everything you've got! Dad taught me that by casting my whole heart into something and having fun doing it, I can expect the best of outcomes.
4. Here comes the big one! Whether it's blessings or trials, a big fish, or a dirty shoe, I know I can handle and reel in anything that is hooked onto me!

Dad taught me how to gut the fish, too, which I enjoy doing, but I couldn't tell you how that's helped me in my reel life. So, I'll just end by saying my dad was just a guy who loved John Denver, nature, and fishing. He had a Ph.D. and was a succesful psychologist. My brother once said that even though he was just a man that everyone knew and loved, he was a hero to me.